The 28-year-old, who was part of the French World Cup squad which reached the World Cup quarter-finals, will present a ready-made Barclays Premier League replacement for Bacary Sagna, who left Arsenal earlier this summer to join Manchester City on a free transfer.

A post on Arsenal's official Twitter feed read: "It's official - Mathieu Debuchy has signed for @Arsenal!"

Debuchy, who Press Association Sport understands has cost the Gunners around £12million, becomes Arsenal's second signing of the summer, following the arrival of Alexis Sanchez from Barcelona.

Debuchy told arsenal.com: "I'm very proud to be joining a great club like Arsenal and to wear its colours, it's one of the biggest clubs in the whole world.

"I'm looking forward to working with Arsene Wenger and to helping the team build on last season's FA Cup success. Playing again in the Champions League is a big excitement for me and I will do my best to help Arsenal compete for trophies."

"He has shown he can perform at the highest level with his club sides and also for France. He is a quality defender who has good Premier League experience and I'm confident he will fit in very well with us."

Debuchy made 46 appearances in his 18 months on Tyneside after signing from Lille, where he won the Ligue 1 and Coupe de France double in 2010-11.

He was named in the Ligue 1 team of the season the following year, having also won the first of his 25 France caps in October 2011 against Albania.

More signings look sure to follow, although German World Cup winner Sami Khedira's personal terms could prove a sticking point on a rumoured £25million move from Real Madrid.

Borussia Dortmund's Lars Bender, who missed the World Cup through injury, is another player Wenger has long admired.

Arsenal also need a goalkeeper, with Colombia goalkeeper David Ospina, of Nice, said to be on the club's radar.

Egypt international defender Ahmed Fathi is having a trial at Arsenal this week, while Atletico Madrid's 19-year-old right-back Javi Manquillo is another a potential new recruit.

Following their trip to the United States, Arsenal host the Emirates Cup on August 2/3 which is likely to present debuts for Sanchez and Debuchy.

Arsenal play Premier League champions Manchester City on August 9 in the Community Shield before starting the new league campaign at home to Crystal Palace.